Applications

Developers and researchers are using the UDL Curriculum Toolkit to
create diverse applications and exemplars. Read below about these
projects and learn about how the Toolkit supported each developer in
achieving their education goals and outcomes.

IQWST-UDL was created to facilitate the development of the first
version of the UDL Curriculum Toolkit and to test the potential of
the Toolkit's use in enhancing student experience and outcomes in
inquiry science education, through the creation of a Universally
Designed web-based science curricula for middle-school students.
IQWST is a 12-unit, full middle school science curriculum that
focuses on big ideas, on scientific practices as integral to the
scientific enterprise, and on integrating literacy practices and
science content learning.

The Foundation Science exemplar was created to support the
development of the first version of the Curriculum Toolkit. The
exemplar was used in classroom settings to explore the promise of
the Toolkit’s use in enhancing high school students’ learning in
inquiry science classes. The exemplar chapter, Learning Experience
2: Simple Change, Unintended Consequences: Exploring Ecosystems, is
drawn from EDC’s Foundation Science project (funded by the National
Science Foundation) which developed four full years of
standards-based curriculum stressing the practices of science in
tackling scientific challenges.

DynaBook: A Digital Resource and Preservice Model for Developing
TPCK

The DynaBook preservice teacher
interface

The DynaBook preservice teacher
interface

In this project, SRI international is collaborating with CAST to
create a digital media resource (a “DynaBook”) coupled with a novel
preservice education model to support the development of teachers
Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge or TPCK. Through the use
of the DynaBook, preservice teachers deepen their own content
knowledge, develop key pedagogical skills, and are supported in the
beneficial use of technology in teaching. The goal is to advance the
preparation of preservice teachers in middle school mathematics
specifically on the topic of proportionality.

Universal Design for Learning Modules: Supporting Literacy in
Physics

The physics module

The physics module

To improve science literacy outcomes for at-risk diverse learners
and broaden participation in science learning, CAST in collaboration
with EDC is creating a proof-of-concept, next generation learning
module in physics. The learning module will combine UDL learning
design, high quality physics content tied to the Common Core State
Standards, targeted support and scaffolding for students, and
learning analytics with feedback mechanisms providing for
apprenticeship in the learning environment with frequent
opportunities for practice with feedback. At the conclusion of the
project the module will be published as an Open Education
Resource.

Transforming Biocomplexity and the Habitable Planet

The Biocomplexity home page
interface

The Biocomplexity home page
interface

TERC in collaboration with CAST will use the transformation of an
existing curriculum as the context for advancing the field of
curriculum design with UDL principles. It will also advance the
functionality of the UDL Curriculum Toolkit to include scaffolds and
supports for images, graphs, diagrams, and models.

The goals of the project are to:

Increase accessibility of the Biocomplexity curriculum to all
students in heterogeneous, upper-level classrooms through:

Developing and researching the effectiveness of multimedia
scaffolds that increase the accessibility of complex
scientific data

Provide additional support for teachers with the pedagogical
challenges presented by innovative classroom activity structures,
and by assessing student progress in a case-based curriculum.

Advance understanding of how to design curricular scaffolding
for students to work with complex data to construct scientific
arguments.

Inquiry Primed: Mitigating the effects of stereotype threat in
middle school science

Inquiry Primed module overview
example

Inquiry Primed module overview
example

Inquiry Primed was created to pilot a professional learning
experience that supports teachers in reducing the impact of
stereotype threat in middle school science. The four 2-week Inquiry
Primed professional learning modules take advantage of features in
the UDL Curriculum Toolkit to increase participant understanding,
facilitate strategy use, and build a community of practice.
Participants read, view videos, link to resources to build
understanding. They use the Highlighting and My Notes features to
collect notes, thoughts, and ideas, and they may share ideas with
their small group using the Whiteboard feature. Participants
transfer research to practice by getting facilitator and peer
support while using strategies in their classrooms, and participate
in small group community of practice discussions with peers.

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Nos. DRL-0730260, 0730348, and 0730603.
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.